Maryland Man Arrested for Assaulting Law Enforcement During Jan. 6 Capitol Breach

A Maryland man has been arrested on felony and misdemeanor charges, including assaulting law enforcement, related to his actions during the breach of the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. His actions and the actions of others disrupted a joint session of the U.S. Congress convened to ascertain and count the electoral votes related to the 2020 presidential election.

Steven Patrick Cook, 24, of Bethesda, Maryland, is charged in a criminal complaint filed in the District of Columbia with two felony offenses of assaulting, resisting, or impeding certain officers and obstruction of law enforcement during civil disorder. In addition to the felonies, Cook is charged with several misdemeanors, including entering or remaining in any restricted building or grounds without lawful authority, disorderly and disruptive conduct in a restricted building or grounds, and engaging in physical violence in a restricted building or grounds.

Cook was arrested in Virginia on Saturday, Sept. 16, 2023, and made his initial appearance today in the District of Columbia.

According to court documents, on Jan. 6, 2021, Cook was identified via multiple body-worn camera footage and open-source videos as among the crowd of rioters on the West Plaza of the U.S. Capitol. At 2:28 p.m., three individuals linked arms and marched into the police line on the West Plaza, breaking the line. Cook followed soon after and began pushing and hitting police officers. Cook grabbed an officer’s baton and punched another.

Read more: Department of Justice